Waterview, proposed 317-unit residential development in east Boulder, heads to planning board Thursday

BOULDER — Developers for the proposed Waterview mixed-income residential development at 5801 and 5847 Arapahoe Ave. in east Boulder have cleared one of the roadblocks that hindered development efforts at the site for more than a decade — bringing it up to speed with federal flood regulations.

The Federal Emergency Management Agency issued a Letter of Map Revision for the site, indicating that changes to site fill and grading have brought it into compliance with FEMA requirements.

Developers hope that this will help the project clear site review and use review at a public hearing with the Boulder Planning Board that will be held virtually at 6 p.m. Thursday.

SPONSORED CONTENT

People Powered: Preparing Longmont Businesses for Economic Success

Longmont Chamber and FNBO present People Powered on April 24, 2024, aiming to inform business owners about workforce development, housing, and transportation issues.

“City staff told us this was maybe the most carefully studied site in all of Boulder,” said William Shutkin, owner of Shutkin Sustainable Living LLC, the Boulder-based developer for the site. “As a result of this work, we actually lost some developable land. We gave it up in order to ensure this was the best site possible for flood-prevention purposes.”

The 15-acre Waterview would consist of 317 residential units, including 80 deed-restricted affordable units, and 15,000 square feet of commercial space across 10 buildings. The units will range from studios to three-bedrooms. Waterview would be the only residential development in Boulder where affordable units and market-rate units are mixed in the same buildings and on the same floors.

There have been numerous previous attempts to develop residential units on the Waterview property: in 2001, 2005 and 2011, according to city planning documents. The site was affected by the 2013 floods and was within the 100-year floodplain. The work to reduce the flood hazards on the property and bring it into FEMA compliance took more than two years, said Steve Blake, head of water resources for the Hørsholm, Denmark-based water consultant DHI Group, which worked on the project.

“The main starting point for us was getting back to the regulated floodplain and restoring it to its earlier site condition,” Blake said.

If the property had remained non-compliant, Boulder could have been at risk of an official FEMA violation, which would have cost the city its standing in the National Flood Insurance Program, the developers said. In addition to Boulder, other municipalities in Boulder County, including Erie, Jamestown, Lyons, Nederland, Superior and Ward, also worked with FEMA to update the floor insurance rate map in the county.

If approved by the planning board, Waterview will undergo technical document review before developers can apply for building permits. Shutkin said he hopes to apply for permits by fall 2021 and break ground in early 2022.

City planners did not respond to requests for comment.

© 2021 BizWest Media LLC